


Are We Out of the Woods Yet?

by Mellybear



Series: Flaming Arrow Fics [1]
Category: Ava's Demon
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, flaming arrow - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-16 21:34:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11261466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mellybear/pseuds/Mellybear
Summary: Everyone is born with a tree tattoo on their forearm that changes with the seasons a-la-beastly movie, but in the year that you meet your soulmate your flowers will bloom pink in the spring rather than white. Ava Ire's has just bloomed a bright blush pink leaving her to wonder just who her soulmate could be.





	Are We Out of the Woods Yet?

Spring has always been the time where mammals found their mates. You wake up from a cold, bleak winter, feeling the sun on your skin for the first time in what seems like ages and suddenly love is in the air. Humans are no different thanks to the trees. 

 

Every human is born with a sapling on their forearm, small and weak just like themselves. It grows with you and changes with the seasons, just like people seem to do. In the summer the tree is beautiful, lush and green. Come Autumn you watch slowly as your leaves fall, one by one, each different beautiful shades of red, orange, yellow, and brown. In winter the tree is dead, sometimes there’s even snow. But nothing compares to spring. Each spring the tree begins to bud up and bloom beautiful white flowers. Except the spring when you find out. 

 

For one spring in everyone’s life the tree turns a blush pink, and those lucky people are left to find their soulmate. You don’t know when you met them, just that it was sometime in the past year. It’s no help, you meet hundreds if not thousands of people every year. How are you supposed to know if it’s the girl you were sat next to in chem class or someone you accidently stepped on in the subway. It’s a deep source of stress every spring. 

 

Which is why Ava Ire is  _ not  _ looking forward to the day her tree turns. She’s only in high school, and while some people do bloom bright pink in high school or even younger, it just feels easier as an adult. Or maybe it’s harder, since your pool feels so much bigger. In school you really only have a small group of people it could be. It’s most likely to be a classmate, someone who’s at least sort of close to your age. If you live in a small town where there’s only one school, you just look over your class list and think of any people you’d only just noticed. 

 

But it was already February and everyone knew the trees were starting to bloom. Everyone figures it out on the same day, the spring equinox. Since grade school there were always a few people who bloomed pink, but since entering freshman year it happened more and more. 

 

“I bet you mine blooms pink,” a low voice said to Ava. She looked over to Maggie, her best friend. Only friend. Whatever. 

“Yeah? Someone in mind?” Ava whispered back, face forward at their teacher. Once upon a time when Ava met Maggie for the first time she thought maybe,  _ maybe _ it could be her. She’d never been more disappointed to see white on both their arms that February. 

“Well I met Gil through student council this Fall.” Ava remembered him. An interesting boy, who seemed to worship the sanctity of the school. Barf. 

“He’s a senior Maggie. And... How do you know his hasn’t bloomed?” Ava didn’t want to say what she was really thinking. Gil was queer as a three dollar bill. Ava tended to pick up on that sort of thing easy, Maggie on the other hand did not. 

“I asked him,” Maggie said simply. Ava whipped her head to look at her wildly green haired friend. That was just considered plain rude to most people, especially if you asked someone who bloomed but didn’t find their mate.

“How about you?” Maggie asked doodling absently as she looked at the whiteboard.

“How about me what?” Ava busied herself with the math problems in front of her like she didn’t have a clue what Maggie could be talking about. Ava didn’t want to think about whether or not her tree would bloom a different color. She couldn’t think of anyone she met that year worthy of such a delicate pink.

“You know what,” she deadpanned. “Are you going to bloom that lovely, virgin pink?” Ava felt her face grow hot as she stared at the pale blue lines on the page. 

“Who would I bloom for? The class president who’s been picking on me relentlessly this year?” She didn’t know why Six was the first person in her head, but they were. Ava really hoped they wouldn’t be her soulmate. They were worse than Gil the way they totally worshiped the school.

“Well you know it’s happening today, high noon. The leafs change.” Ava didn’t need reminding. They were about to be free to lunch, and everyone would sit and gawk with their friends over the change. White or pink, the tattoos were beautiful. The bell rang unexpectedly and everyone began the mad dash to put their things away. Ava hadn’t realized their talking consumed the head start they were supposed to get on the homework. But she was sure everyone else had the same issue, probably having similar conversations. 

 

Ava was not picking up her phone. She had no reason for it. No one would call, no one would text. She might get a few push notifications. She was willing to make that sacrifice to not see the time. She wouldn’t look at her forearm either. No was was she pulling up the sleeve of her red sweater to check the color. She didn’t even know if it was noon. She wouldn’t check her phone, so she wouldn’t check her arm. Simple.

“Hey it’s 11:59.” Ava sighed heavily as Maggie slammed her lunch tray down on the bench next to her. Ava hoped she would have hung around Gil, but she realized that he was sitting ten feet away with a few student council students. Ava made a good cover for Maggie’s spying.

“Thank you Magnolia, I was trying to avoid knowing.” Ava’s words had no bite, but she still wasn’t happy. But still she rolled up her sleeve, knowing Maggie would likely stretch it out trying to pull it up herself.

“Why are you wearing a sweater? It’s spring.” Ava shot Maggie a look. She knew why. Of course she did, but Maggie asked dumb questions when she drooled over boys. 

“On three?” Ava asked avoiding looking at her forearm, knowing it was easier if Maggie looked at hers. They’d done it before. Ava checked Maggies, and vice versa. It was better than being disappointed by just your own skin. Maggies dark hand picked up Ava’s pale forearm and Ava repeated the gesture with her own free hand. 

“One...”

“Two...   
“Three!” The last part was shouted in unison as their eyes flicked to the others arm.

“Sorry Maggie it’s-,”   
“Oh my god!” Several people whipped their heads to look at the source of the shouting. Of course it had to be Maggie. And of course it was over Ava. She cursed herself, why has she chosen such a public courtyard? Most people turned back to their own arms and friend groups but there were a few lingerers. 

 

Maggie’s flowers were a beautiful pure snow white. Ava wasn’t surprised or disappointed. Who wanted to meet their soulmate at fifteen? But of course fate wanted to slap Ava across the face with soft pink petals. 

“Fuck...” Ava was whispering to herself as she went to cover up the tree. But Maggie was quicker. Ava felt her arm snatched up in the air, being waved frantically around.

“Hey everyone! Ava found her soulmate!” A few people whistled gleefully for the girl they probably didn’t even know. Some of the student council laughed. Ava wanted to die.

“Gil got his too! Think they’re a match!?” Gev hollered over. Ava frantically shook her head as Maggie shot her a look. She was sure she must have known Gil before this year. But then... No she’d met him the same time Maggie did. What if he wasn’t as flaming as Ava predicted? 

“I don’t think so guys...” Ava sighed, relieved as Gil quelled the rumors. But Ava did have to wonder who it really was. Gil seemed to be eyeing Gev more than usual. Had they met this past year? 

“Maybe this year is your year Maggie,” Ava tried to comfort. She just shrugged, with a look that said ‘I’m used to it’. 

“You should start making up a list. People you remember meeting this past year.” Ava knew that was Maggie’s plan when we tree turned. But did Ava care as much as her? Maybe she could just satisfy the girl, since she seemed so bummed about her own tree. Flicking her deep red hair over her shoulder Ava pulled out her science notebook, flipping to the back. She could rip the page out later.

 

“Well I got into the Senior science course this year. Those were almost all new people.” She wrote in her loopy handwriting ‘Science Class’ she’d check for pink trees when she went to class after lunch. 

“Anyone stick out in there?” Maggie asked watching the redhead write. Ava chewed her lip as she thought. She never did pay much attention to others. But she had noticed one boy, who also didn’t seem to pay attention to anyone else. Her shaking hand reached down to bullet a name underneath the first line. 

“Odin Arrow?” Maggie read aloud. “No. N-O. No way.” Maggied tried to steal Ava’s pen from her hand but she held her arm out. 

“What?” She demanded quickly. If there was a problem she could say it, not violently take it out in ink on Ava’s list. 

“He’s a stuttering weirdo. He’s not your soulmate.” Maggie seemed sure of it, but Ava thought the same of herself. She didn’t have a stutter, but when she was confronted her speech came out garbled and wrong. Maybe it was a birds of a feather sort of deal.

 

Ava felt her breath catch in her throat as she saw an approaching couple. She was not dealing with this right now. She tried as quick as she could to stuff her notebook away, but it was far too late. 

“Look Pedri, the little ones are searching for a soulmate.” The notes were snatched from Ava’s lap by a snakelike hand. Ava was sure Wrathia had been prowling for this specific moment. “And look at  _ this _ name.” Her longterm boyfriend Pedri only smirked. He was the silent type. 

 

Pedri and Wrathia hadn’t been dating when their trees changed. In fact Wrathia was dating another boy who didn’t change with her. That was of course that for Wrathia, and he was kicked to the curb. In stepped Pedri to win her love. By curb stomping the old boyfriend for not loving her proper. Maggie said it was romantic in a bad boy sort of way. It made Ava feel sick. 

 

“You know Odin don’t you?” Wrathia only ever seemed to ask questions she knew the answer to. Ava knew that Pedri was just as much of a bully as Wrathia. Maybe worse. She didn’t need to hear about how he brutalized the boy with the stutter. That made her feel sicker than Wrathia’s nameless, faceless ex. 

“They’re just ideas.” Ava tried to snatch the notes back, but Wrathia was too tall. The notes were held over her head, and a very familiar game started. Ava knew she was the monkey in the middle. But she didn’t intend to run between the couple like an idiot.

“What do you say we  _ tell  _ our friend Odin about this?” She wasn’t asking. 

“Look I already told Ava it’s not him.” Maggie to the rescue. At least she was tall. “He’s a freak.” Wrathia smiled a little, seeming to admire Maggie for the statement. 

“Fine...” The notes were quickly relinquished, and Ava had to wonder how Maggie  _ did  _ that. “But if we see a particular freak’s tree has turned pink... Well you better find him before we do.” And just like that Wrathia left, leaving behind a heavy scent of perfume as she did. Pedri followed wordlessly after her. Ava felt like there was a hole in her chest. She didn’t want a soulmate if they got stuck putting up with this all the time. Ava didn’t even want to put up with it, why should she be allowed to drag someone else in?

“Maybe it’s the girl you share a P.E. locker with?” Maggie suggested wanting to pretend nothing had happened.   
“Maybe. I don’t care.” Ava packed up her science notes and slung her bag over her shoulder.

“Don’t be like this...” Maggie’s voice was pleading, but a touch annoyed. Ava knew she thought she should be grateful. She didn’t care what Maggie thought.

“I gotta go to class.” Seconds after she’d said it the bell rang, alerting everyone that they also needed to get to class. Maybe Ava’s internal clock wasn’t as bad as she thought it was. 

“Don’t be a depressing mess all day. You don’t want your soulmate seeing you like that.” Ava wanted to retort that depressing mess was just who she was, but Maggie was already walking away with her green curls bouncing as she stepped. She was jealous. Ava would gladly trade places. 

 

Ava slid silently into her desk at the back of the room in her science class. She eyed everyone subtly, thinking maybe it was them. But there was only one group of girls tittering over a changed tattoo of the happily committed head cheerleader. Ava wondered if her quarterback boyfriend changed too. Sometimes things were cliche like that. They wouldn’t be cliches otherwise.

 

Then Odin walked in. Nobody looked up, he didn’t either. Ava held her breath, panicked like a deer in the headlights. She wanted to look anywhere but him. Anywhere but his arm. He was wearing a leather jacket, and she was thankful. She didn’t have to torture herself trying to sneak a look. She could just look at... What was she looking at? Her eyes focused on a poster of the periodic table. She pretended to be extremely interested in it as Odin sat in his own seat in front of her. Why did he have to be right in front of her? 

 

He kept the jacket on, which made Ava wonder what that was indicative of. Had his tree bloomed white? Or pink? Maybe his tree was dead. Sometimes that happened, when your soulmate died. But being eighteen with a dead soul mate would be... Tragic. Ava had no clue why she even thought of it. He kept his eyes front, with his arm practically glued in place on his desk. If he changed, he wasn’t looking. Ava wasn’t either, so instead she decided to stare forward. She was practically miming him. 

“Hey Ava, I heard at lunch your tree bloomed pink!” Ava’s eyes practically bugged out of her head. She turned to her left to see a sweet looking girl, one of Gil’s friends, Fria talking to her. As Ava turned to look at Fira her face was the same color as the flowers on her forearm. 

“Yeah... I don’t really have any ideas, or even want to think about it so...” Fira nodded understandingly looking back up at the front. When Ava peaked at Odin she couldn’t tell if he was any more on edge than usual. He tended to look like a bird ready to take flight in that way. The teacher said something about a worksheet to be passed out and Ava thanked god silently. Maybe staring at the periodic table would be of use to her. The stacks of papers were set on the desks at the front of each row and promptly passed back. Ava tried to keep her eyes glued to her desk as Odin didn’t even look back to pass the paper. But he was using his tattooed arm... Was he testing her?

 

Before she could stop herself her eyes flicked to the tattoo that was just barely peaking out, and she grabbed the paper. She moved slow so she could make sure she wasn’t too confused, but he seemed impatient as he shook the paper. Ava caught a sight of blush pink buds and reacted like lightning had struck her when their hands brushed up against each other.  _ ‘Get it together, get it together, get it together.’  _ Ava slid the worksheet onto her desk but it fluttered to the floor instead. A million violent curse words ran through her head as she bent down to pick it up on Odin’s left side. Despite lack of religion she prayed this small, insignificant moment would pass without incident. Odin looked down to see her own forearm, covered in pink flowers poking out from her sleeve. But he already knew that. He reached down himself and picked up the paper before she could and they both sat up.

“Y-you dr-dropped this.” He said turning to face her for the first time all class. 

“Yeah thanks...” Ava took the paper from him and set it on her desk, making sure this time it would stay put. 

“S-so your wr-wr-wrist. Y-you know wh-o it is yet-t?” Ava was unsure if he was stumbling more than usual. She didn’t think he’d ever said this much to her. Ava shook her head slowly as she pulled out her notebook. 

“And you?” Was it polite to ask the same, or was she prying too much? She folded over the spiral bound notes to find a blank page as Odin shrugged.

“Not interested.” His answer was short and simple, no catches in his voice causing Ava to look up. 

“Well maybe-,”   
“I-is th-that my name?” Ava’s face shifted from a questioning look at him to a panicked look down at her notes. She wasn’t even  _ thinking  _ when she flipped open her notes. She’d pulled up her list of suspects by mistake. 

“No!” Ava quickly slammed the notes shut, with far more force than needed for the thin sheets of paper. Several people took note of the sudden outburst and turned to look at the pair as both their faces flushed. Fira was giving Ava a concerned look, as if to ask if Odin was bothering her somehow.

“I’m sorry-, No I just-, I was writing the people I met-, I just thought-,” Ava couldn’t stop her mouth from uttering all the excuses that were flooding into her mind all at once. Slowly and wordlessly Odin turned around and Ava wished she could sink into the ground and never be forced to face any of the people who’d been looking ever again. But then Odin was slipping off his jacket and she was overwhelmed by the smell of some unfamiliar musk. She felt a little dazed by the scent as he turned to her showing off his own forearm. She’d already seen, but he was  _ showing  _ her this time. 

“D-do you wan-wanna g-g-get lunch?” He wasn’t looking directly at her, but he was turned around in his desk, face flushed and eyes averted while he stumbled through the question.

“Yes!” He looked up shocked that she’d actually agreed and stared into her deep brown eyes. 

“I-I-I-I’ll-,”

“Pick me up after school?” Odin nodded, blushing even deeper now at his stumbling. “It’s a date.”

**Author's Note:**

> I cranked this out almost solely at three am the other night when I read the Soulmate AU idea on sixxon's masterlist. http://sixxon.tumblr.com/post/142197708620/soulmate-au-masterlist 
> 
> basically I am always gonna be flaming arrow trash and I love high school/soulmate AUs bc it's where they can be Happy.
> 
> please comment and kudos and check me out on shslnotsogrump! feel free to request as well :)


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